http://news.yahoo.com/india-drones-prote...50543.html This is the first time I've ever heard of using drones to be used to protect wildlife, I enjoy hearing that things are being done to protect wildlife. But I'm uneducated in the field and was wondering if this is common or a first time thing? I'm assuming it'd be effective.

"My nation expects me to be physically harder and mentally stronger than my enemies. If knocked down, I will get back up, every time. I will draw on every remaining ounce of strength to protect my teammates and to accomplish our mission. I am never out of the fight." - Marcus Luttrell

We will see UAV's used for more things than just this. UAV's are right at the beginning of use... Kinda like when cars were first invented and there were hardly any roads... or when dial-up services like compuserve were cool and the internet only linked to universities.

It would make my day if Hellfire missiles started raining down on poachers though these UAV's are strictly surveillance. UAV's are soooo much cheaper to run that soon they will replace allot of roles previously requiring a pilot in the cockpit. In the meantime we haven't scratched the surface with all the new roles for UAV's that the cost savings have enabled.

On the military side UAV's can withstand high forces like a 15g turn and do aerial maneuvers that would cause humans to blackout or die. Thats why fighter jets are destined to eventually be decommissioned from military service. Things that require rapid response like missile defence and ecm can be mostly automated. Not to mention - if you can do away with a cockpit, ejector seats, life support, extra armour plating for the pilot it dramatically reduces cost and complexity.

“Forget Jesus, the stars died so you could be born.” - Lawrence M. Krauss

(12-04-2013 06:04 AM)DeepThought Wrote: We will see UAV's used for more things than just this. UAV's are right at the beginning of use... Kinda like when cars were first invented and there were hardly any roads... or when dial-up services like compuserve were cool and the internet only linked to universities.

It would make my day if Hellfire missiles started raining down on poachers though these UAV's are strictly surveillance. UAV's are soooo much cheaper to run that soon they will replace allot of roles previously requiring a pilot in the cockpit. In the meantime we haven't scratched the surface with all the new roles for UAV's that the cost savings have enabled.

On the military side UAV's can withstand high forces like a 15g turn and do aerial maneuvers that would cause humans to blackout or die. Thats why fighter jets are destined to eventually be decommissioned from military service. Things that require rapid response like missile defence and ecm can be mostly automated. Not to mention - if you can do away with a cockpit, ejector seats, life support, extra armour plating for the pilot it dramatically reduces cost and complexity.

Didn't stop the UK and the US ordering over 3,000 of the new f-35 fighter jets at something like 40million a piece which are suppose to be in service for the next 40years... (that information may be several years old however...)

Considering the rate at which technology grows and the practical applications of UAVs that wasn't very fiscally smart of the government if you ask me.

You say they can tolerate up to 15 G's? fighter jets and pilots can only tolerate 9 G's, any more then 9 and a pilot will black out.
Now what happens when a reasonably cheap unmanned vehicle flown by some North Korean kid in his mothers basement become capable of shooting down a 40million jet (and pilot)? That 40million dollar jets seems like a hell of a lot of money down the drain...

You know what it reminds me of? WW2 battleships.
Prior to WW2, especially in WW1, airplanes just started seeing use and were very shitty (to say the least). Battleships were the primary naval superpower vessel. The bigger, the better.
BUT, technology came along. Planes were developed to sink these VERY VERY expensive battle ships. That's why the Japs lost afterall, thinking the battleship was still the primary power at sea.
Take the Japanese 'Yamato', largest battleship ever constructed. It was fucking huge and it's guns were huger. VERY expensive. Along comes 300 American naval bombers and sinks the thing and 5 other smaller vessels (a light cruiser and 4 destroyers) for a cost of 10 aircraft...

Same story is going to happen here. The pilot flown jets are the battleship, the cheap UAV toys are the planes.

As for practical uses like wild life protection, I've never herd of them being used like that but it's a really good idea.
It must save a hell of a lot of time and effort, you can certainly see a lot more in a shorter time span from a birds eye view then you can on the ground.